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If you feel more irritable since you have switched to your low-carb diet, you can either blame it on missing your pasta, potatoes and cookies or to the adaptation process your body has to go through at the beginning. Whether the cause of your irritability on your low-carb diet is more physiological or psychological, your mood should improve after a few weeks.

Transition

If you're used to eating a considerable amount of carbohydrates from breads, breakfast cereals, fruit juices, pasta, soft drinks, muffins desserts and potatoes, eliminating these foods from your diet requires your body to go through a transition period. On a high-carb diet, the sugars derived from the digestion of carbohydrates constitute the main source of energy for your body. Without carbohydrates, your body has to rely more on fat, both from your diet and body fat stores, and ketones, which are produced by fat burning, as its main fuel. The adaptation period usually take a few days, although it may require up to four weeks in some people.

Side Effects

It is common to experience side effects during the transition period from a high-carb to a low-carb diet. These side effects are not dangerous and are only temporary. Your low-carb diet can make you feel irritable during the first few days or weeks. Other common side effects sometimes reported by new low-carb dieters are fatigue, dizziness or lightheadedness and constipation. Not every low-carb dieter experiences these side effects, especially if they follow protocol for an easy transition to a low-carb diet.

Transition Tips

If you are just getting started on your low-carb diet and feel irritable, you can improve your mood by implementing a few tips from low-carb experts Stephen D. Phinney and Jeff S. Volek, authors of "The Art and Science of Low-Carbohydrate Living." Phinney and Volek recommend that people starting a low-carb diet drink plenty of water, include at least 1 to 2 tablespoon of extra fat from butter, cream or olive oil at each of their meals and add an extra 1/2 teaspoon of salt a day to their food.

Missing Carbs

If you have been on your low-carb diet for a while now and still experience irritability, it may simply be due to the fact that you miss some of your favorite high-carb foods. Do you feel deprived on your low-carb diet or do you find your food choices boring? If that is the case, seek out low-carb cookbooks to help you find ways to better enjoy your low-carb diet. If you miss burgers and fries, try using portobello mushrooms caps to make a low-carb bun and turnips to make homemade low-carb fries. If you miss your cakes, cookies, pancakes and muffins, experiment with almond meal and coconut flour, two low-carb flour alternatives, to recreate your favorite treats while keeping your carb intake low.

New Atkins for a New You: The Ultimate Diet for Shedding Weight and Feeling Great; Eric C. Westman, Stephen D. Phinney and Jeff S. Volek

The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living: An Expert Guide to Making the Life-Saving Benefits of Carbohydrate Restriction Sustainable and Enjoyable: Stephen D. Phinney and Jeff S. Volek

About the Author

Aglaee Jacob is a registered dietitian. She has experience working with people who have diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and obesity issues. Jacob obtained a bachelor of science and a master of science, both in nutrition, from Laval University in Quebec City, Canada.